


Distraction

by bluemoonmaverick



Series: Supposition [18]
Category: Stargate SG-1
Genre: Angst, F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-03
Updated: 2014-07-03
Packaged: 2018-02-07 08:42:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,486
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1892547
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bluemoonmaverick/pseuds/bluemoonmaverick
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This story is part of a series that, while sticking strictly to canon, explores the theory that Sam and Jack were engaged in a clandestine romance off-screen from Season 6 onward.</p>
<p>This tag occurs during the events of It's Good to Be King and takes place between the time Jack and Sam blow up Ares' ship and when they leave Maybourne's planet.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Distraction

Sam watched as Ares' ship broke into a million pieces in one final, gigantic explosion that rocked the small craft they were flying. Jack, who up to that point had remained somewhat staid, unexpectedly let out a loud whoop and pumped his fist in the air.

"Yes! Take that, you snaky bastard!" He turned to look at her, grinning widely. "Whaddaya think, Carter - just like old times, huh? You, me, kicking Goa'uld ass...God, I miss this, Carter, I really do."

Sam felt her heart leap at the way he was smiling at her. She couldn't remember the last time he looked at her with such joy. As he turned his attention to piloting the craft back to the surface of the planet, she wondered for a moment if his words might hold a double meaning. She quickly dismissed the notion as wishful thinking. That stage of their relationship was over. He was simply excited to be back in the field. Still, she couldn't prevent a deep sense of nostalgia from welling up inside of her.

"Me too, sir," she replied softly, her voice catching a bit as she spoke the words.

By the time they returned to the village, the celebration was in full swing. As it turned out, Harry Maybourne and his subjects, helped in no small part by the other half of SG-1, had handily defeated Ares' Jaffa on the ground. Having seen the explosion in the sky, they knew immediately the Goa'uld threat was eradicated, so when Jack and Sam walked into the square, they were greeted by music and dancing and laughter.

Much to Jack's dismay, Harry actually walked up and kissed him on both cheeks, before handing him a great tankard of ale. The stunned expression on Jack's face caused Sam to erupt in an uncontrollable fit of the giggles, which earned her a stern look from her commanding officer.

Daniel and Teal'c quickly found them, and at Harry's insistence, they ultimately agreed to spend the night on the planet, though Jack did a fine job of protesting long and hard before finally capitulating to Harry's demands. Soon, the team was celebrating with the rest of the villagers as if they belonged there.

It wasn't long, however, before Sam's attention was drawn to the Ancient craft Jack had set down on a small hill a short distance from the village. The thought that it might be able to travel through both space _and_ time fascinated her. She had to know how it worked and could see no reason to wait until they delivered it to the SGC.

Her mind made up, she quietly slipped away from the party and climbed to the top of the rise. When she reached the peak, she edged around to the back of the ship and hit the button that opened hatch.

As she began to dissemble the control panel on the time device, her thoughts drifted back to her conversation with Jack in the spacecraft earlier that day. Once again, she considered whether her commanding officer missed more than just their missions together. She sighed. Regardless, she was beginning to realize that she had been longing for his company, and that was a dangerous sentiment for a woman engaged to another man.

She didn't notice her commanding officer walk up behind her until his voice broke the silence of the night. "Mind if I join you?"

She jumped a bit, momentarily startled by his interruption. "How did you find me?"

"Come on, Carter. You've got a brand new, shiny doohicky just sitting here calling your name." He quirked a smile at her. "The moment I realized you weren't at the party, I knew _exactly_ where you were."

She ducked her head and averted his gaze. Of course, he knew where she was. He knew her better than anyone. Better, even, than...She quickly turned her attention back to the control panel, refusing to finish that thought.

He situated himself in the pilot's chair, then leaned back with his hands interlaced behind his head, taking in the beauty of the starlit landscape outside of the viewport. "Wow. This is...amazing. And so very, very wrong."

Sam had no idea to what he was referring. She looked up from the now partially dissembled time machine. "Sir?"

"Of all people...Maybourne doesn't deserve this." He gestured toward the window. "Any of this – this planet, his monarchy, the women...I mean, really, where's karma when you need it?" When she didn't say anything, he looked behind him, only to find her staring down at her hands. "Everything okay, Carter?"

"Yes, sir," she replied immediately without thought, lifting her head to meet his gaze. But when he just continued to stare at her, she shook her head and sighed. "No, sir." As he kept looking at her, now with a furrowed brow, she closed her eyes in resignation. "I don't know," she said quietly, her voice breaking a little for the second time that day.

Still he didn't say anything. She fought the urge to tell him everything – how much she missed him, how she was having second thoughts about her engagement to Pete, how somewhere, deep down, she knew he was the only man for her. But he just sat there waiting patiently for her to continue, so finally she took a deep breath and attempted to explain what she was feeling.

"It's just...I don't..." She searched for the words that would adequately articulate her thoughts but quickly became frustrated when they refused to come. She hammered her fist onto the control panel, causing the tiny pieces she had removed to jump. "Ugh! I just can't think!"

He shrugged and turned his gaze back to the view outside the window. "Maybe that's the problem, Carter. Maybe you think too much."

They sat in silence for a long while, until Sam finally looked upwards in an attempt to prevent her tears from falling. The movement drew Jack's attention, and when he looked at her again, he was genuinely surprised to see her crying.

"Hey," he said softly.

She sniffed and wiped her eyes. "Sorry, sir. It's just been a rough couple of months, you know?"

He looked out over the dark countryside. "Yeah," he replied and blew out a breath. "I know." He stood suddenly, crossed the short distance to where she was working, and held his hand out to her. "C'mere."

She hesitated only for a second before she took it. He quickly pulled her to her to him and wrapped one arm around her waist. "Don't think," he whispered in her ear. Then he caught her free hand in his and began to move with her in time to the music that was drifting up from the village down below.

They danced slowly, Jack holding her tightly to him, and Sam closed her eyes and allowed herself to settle comfortably into his embrace. Within moments, she was overwhelmed with his masculine scent, the feel of his firm chest beneath her hand, his warm breath on her cheek.

Before she lost herself completely, he spun her around, causing her to laugh. As the music came to an end, he dipped her low. He brought her up slowly, and when she looked into his eyes, the intensity of his gaze caused her breath to hitch.

Time seemed to stand still. Sam wasn't sure how long they stood staring at one another before Jack finally raised his palm to cup her face. As his fingers brushed her cheek, he began to lower his face to hers. She closed her eyes and leaned in to meet him half way, her heart nearly pounding out of her chest.

This! This was what she had been missing all these months! The way he touched her sent a thrill straight through her core. Longing and anticipation mingled with excitement and desire. All she could think of was him – how much she wanted him; how she wouldn't be complete without him.

Just as his lips were about to touch hers, a grating voice sounded from behind the spacecraft, causing them to jump apart.

"Jack! There you are!" As Harry poked his head into the open hatch, he craned his neck to get a better look at the couple still standing closely together. "Oh. Sorry," he said, though he sounded nothing of the sort. "Was I, um, interrupting something?"

Though Harry's eyebrows had nearly crawled to the back of his head, Jack ignored him, his complete attention on Sam. "You okay?"

"Yeah," she replied, giving him a small smile. "I think I am."

Harry inclined his head in the direction of the village, and reluctantly Jack and Sam turned to follow him back to the party. Before they reached the bottom of the hill, though, Jack grasped Sam's hand and gave it a quick squeeze.

It was a long time before she let it go.


End file.
